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War Memoirs #1
Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall
Adolf Hitler: My Part on His Downfall is volume One of Spike Milligan's outrageous, hilarious, legendary War Memoirs.
'At Victoria station the R.T.O. gave me a travel warrant, a white feather and a picture of Hitler marked "This is your enemy". I searched every compartment, but he wasn't on the train . . .'
In this, the first of Spike Milligan's uproarious recollections of life in the army, our hero takes us from the outbreak of war in 1939 ('it must have been something we said'), through his attempts to avoid enlistment ('time for my appendicitus, I thought') and his gunner training in Bexhill ('There was one drawback. No ammunition') to the landing at Algiers in 1943 ('I closed my eyes and faced the sun. I fell down a hatchway').
Filled with bathos, pathos and gales of ribald laughter, this is a barely sane helping of military goonery and superlative Milliganese.
'The most irreverent, hilarious book about the war that I have ever read' Sunday Express
'Desperately funny, vivid, vulgar' Sunday Times
'Milligan is the Great God to all of us' John Cleese
'The Godfather of Alternative Comedy' Eddie Izzard
'That absolutely glorious way of looking at things differently. A great man' Stephen Fry
Spike Milligan was one of the greatest and most influential comedians of the twentieth century. Born in India in 1918, he served in the Royal Artillery during WWII in North Africa and Italy. At the end of the war, he forged a career as a jazz musician, sketch-show writer and performer, before joining forces with Peter Sellers and Harry Secombe to form the legendary Goon Show. Until his death in 2002, he had success as on stage and screen and as the author of over eighty books of fiction, memoir, poetry, plays, cartoons and children's stories.
'At Victoria station the R.T.O. gave me a travel warrant, a white feather and a picture of Hitler marked "This is your enemy". I searched every compartment, but he wasn't on the train . . .'
In this, the first of Spike Milligan's uproarious recollections of life in the army, our hero takes us from the outbreak of war in 1939 ('it must have been something we said'), through his attempts to avoid enlistment ('time for my appendicitus, I thought') and his gunner training in Bexhill ('There was one drawback. No ammunition') to the landing at Algiers in 1943 ('I closed my eyes and faced the sun. I fell down a hatchway').
Filled with bathos, pathos and gales of ribald laughter, this is a barely sane helping of military goonery and superlative Milliganese.
'The most irreverent, hilarious book about the war that I have ever read' Sunday Express
'Desperately funny, vivid, vulgar' Sunday Times
'Milligan is the Great God to all of us' John Cleese
'The Godfather of Alternative Comedy' Eddie Izzard
'That absolutely glorious way of looking at things differently. A great man' Stephen Fry
Spike Milligan was one of the greatest and most influential comedians of the twentieth century. Born in India in 1918, he served in the Royal Artillery during WWII in North Africa and Italy. At the end of the war, he forged a career as a jazz musician, sketch-show writer and performer, before joining forces with Peter Sellers and Harry Secombe to form the legendary Goon Show. Until his death in 2002, he had success as on stage and screen and as the author of over eighty books of fiction, memoir, poetry, plays, cartoons and children's stories.
142 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1971
About the author
Spike Milligan
236 books276 followersTerence Alan Patrick Seán Milligan, known as Spike, was a comedian, writer and musician. He was of Irish descent, but spent most of his childhood in India and lived most of his later life in England, moving to Australia after retirement. He is famous for his work in The Goon Show, children's poetry and a series of comical autobiographical novels about his experiences serving in the British Army in WWII. Spike Milligan suffered from bipolar disorder, which led to depression and frequent breakdowns, but he will be remembered as a comic genius. His tombstone reads 'I told you I was ill' in Gaelic.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 389 reviews
March 24, 2017
Oh, holy crap... I can't breathe! My neighbours probably think I've gone completely off my trolley as I've spent most of this book laughing very much out loud!
This is a re-read for me; I think I read it for the first time in paperback about a decade ago, but when I saw the Scribd e-library had all seven volumes in audiobook format read by the man himself, I couldn't resist reading them again. I'm actually not entirely sure how many volumes of this I read the first time around but I'm pretty sure it wasn't all seven. I'm definitely going all the way this time, though.
This has to be one of the funniest war memoirs ever written. Spike brings his trademark manic eye to bear on his own experiences as a gunner in World War II and, while some of the events are tragic (obviously) you still barely get a chance to breathe between laughs.
Yes, it's irreverent, yes, it's disrespectful, but laughing in the face of tragedy is how we Brits keep from going insane. You'd have to be a seriously curmudgeonly bugger not to crack a smile reading this.
Right! Bring on volume two!
This is a re-read for me; I think I read it for the first time in paperback about a decade ago, but when I saw the Scribd e-library had all seven volumes in audiobook format read by the man himself, I couldn't resist reading them again. I'm actually not entirely sure how many volumes of this I read the first time around but I'm pretty sure it wasn't all seven. I'm definitely going all the way this time, though.
This has to be one of the funniest war memoirs ever written. Spike brings his trademark manic eye to bear on his own experiences as a gunner in World War II and, while some of the events are tragic (obviously) you still barely get a chance to breathe between laughs.
Yes, it's irreverent, yes, it's disrespectful, but laughing in the face of tragedy is how we Brits keep from going insane. You'd have to be a seriously curmudgeonly bugger not to crack a smile reading this.
Right! Bring on volume two!
September 23, 2007
Recently when I posted a quote from this book, people guessed that it came from Terry Prachett or Monty Python or Douglas Adams. Which is actually rather revealing because if modern British comedy and humor writers have a spiritual grandfather, it's Spike Milligan. Although he was also a talented musician, he became known for his mad cap and often surreal comedy writing, particularly his work on the Goon Show.
Before all that, he went to war, and before he went to war, he had to be trained. This book, the first in a series, looks at the time he spent with his unit wandering around Southern Britain learning how to soldier, and it's hilarious. From the bizarre officer's dances Spike's band played at to the crazy antics they got up to when learning to work the radios--he was a radio operator--it's funny in a slightly crazed way. Milligan actually suffered from bi-polar disorder all his life, and this whole book reads like an extended and very funny up period.
Before all that, he went to war, and before he went to war, he had to be trained. This book, the first in a series, looks at the time he spent with his unit wandering around Southern Britain learning how to soldier, and it's hilarious. From the bizarre officer's dances Spike's band played at to the crazy antics they got up to when learning to work the radios--he was a radio operator--it's funny in a slightly crazed way. Milligan actually suffered from bi-polar disorder all his life, and this whole book reads like an extended and very funny up period.
November 8, 2018
دیروز صبح شروع کردم به خوندنش و امروز بعدازظهر تموم شد. خب البته برای یه کتاب 200 صفحهای رکورد محسوب نمیشه، ولی به هر حال جذابیتش رو تا حدی نشون میده. وقتی کتاب تموم شد، من داشتم گریه میکردم. کتاب پر از تکههای خندهدار بود که یک جاهایی باعث میشد بلند بلند بخندم، پایان تلخی هم نداشت، ولی فقط یک جمله، یک جمله کافی بود که موقع تموم شدن کتاب، آدم زار زار گریه کنه: «اونها داشتن به سمت مرگ خودشون میرفتن.» به سمت مرگ خودشون میرفتن و کلی ماجراهای خندهدار میساختن که یه نویسنده ماهر میتونه ازش یه کتاب خوب درست کنه. ولی اشک آدم درمیاد که این آدما، اینهمه خاطرات خندهدار، اینهمه روزهای خوب و بد که بعد از 60-70 سال، نه فقط خودشون که به لطف ادبیات ما هم باهاشون زندگی کردیم، به سمت مرگ میرفتن، جنگی که جز تباهی و ویرانی دستاورد دیگهای نداشت.
September 10, 2019
Spike Milligan's personal wartime memories
Censors warning Non P.C. language
image:
At Victoria Station the R.T.O. gave me a travel warrant, a white feather and a picture of Hitler marked ‘This is your enemy’. I searched every compartment, but he wasn’t on the train.
Army logic
Silence when you are speaking to an officer
This could mean promotion for you or death
image:
Oh to be a pilot
“I hear you want a transfer, Milligan.”
“Yes sir, I want to join the R.A.F.”
“Ah yes, those are the ones that fly.”
“Yes sir, they go up whereas we just go along.”
“Have you ever flown before?”
“No sir, but I’ve been upstairs on a bus on my own.”
“No, what I said was, have you ever flown before. I didn’t say anything about buses.”
“What would you like to be.”
“A pilot, sir.”
“Want to go out with pretty girls, eh?”
After a stringent Physical Examination they told me. “Sorry, your eyesight isn’t up to what we need for a pilot; however, we have a number of vacancies for rear gunners.”
“No sir, I don’t want to be at the back, I want to drive.”
Be prepared
One issue was a large vacuum-sealed tin of ‘Emergency Chocolate’, only to be eaten in the event of, say, being surrounded by the Enemy. That night, in bed, surrounded by the Enemy, I ate my Emergency Chocolate.
In Algeria
I made friends with two little French kids on their way to school, a girl and a boy. I gave them two English pennies. In exchange they gave me an empty matchbox, with a camel label on the top. I shall always remember their faces.
Savor a view of World War Two from one member of Britain's best comedy team - The Goons
Enjoy!
Censors warning Non P.C. language
image:
At Victoria Station the R.T.O. gave me a travel warrant, a white feather and a picture of Hitler marked ‘This is your enemy’. I searched every compartment, but he wasn’t on the train.
Army logic
Silence when you are speaking to an officer
This could mean promotion for you or death
image:
Oh to be a pilot
“I hear you want a transfer, Milligan.”
“Yes sir, I want to join the R.A.F.”
“Ah yes, those are the ones that fly.”
“Yes sir, they go up whereas we just go along.”
“Have you ever flown before?”
“No sir, but I’ve been upstairs on a bus on my own.”
“No, what I said was, have you ever flown before. I didn’t say anything about buses.”
“What would you like to be.”
“A pilot, sir.”
“Want to go out with pretty girls, eh?”
After a stringent Physical Examination they told me. “Sorry, your eyesight isn’t up to what we need for a pilot; however, we have a number of vacancies for rear gunners.”
“No sir, I don’t want to be at the back, I want to drive.”
Be prepared
One issue was a large vacuum-sealed tin of ‘Emergency Chocolate’, only to be eaten in the event of, say, being surrounded by the Enemy. That night, in bed, surrounded by the Enemy, I ate my Emergency Chocolate.
In Algeria
I made friends with two little French kids on their way to school, a girl and a boy. I gave them two English pennies. In exchange they gave me an empty matchbox, with a camel label on the top. I shall always remember their faces.
Savor a view of World War Two from one member of Britain's best comedy team - The Goons
Enjoy!
May 7, 2018
Brilliant!
I was shown a picture of Adolf Hitler and was told ,this is your enemy. I searched every compartment of the train but I couldn't find him anywhere. If this isn't enough to rope you in then I don't know what is. It piqued my curiosity immediately. A brilliant take of life during wartime. Having to enlist when most people probably didn't want to. He has included fictional characters throughout, just as well! The humour remains the same. Typically Milligan to the end.😂
I was shown a picture of Adolf Hitler and was told ,this is your enemy. I searched every compartment of the train but I couldn't find him anywhere. If this isn't enough to rope you in then I don't know what is. It piqued my curiosity immediately. A brilliant take of life during wartime. Having to enlist when most people probably didn't want to. He has included fictional characters throughout, just as well! The humour remains the same. Typically Milligan to the end.😂
September 10, 2019
Adolf Hitler: My Part in his Downfall, is the first of Spike Milligan's seven memoirs that recount his recollections of life in the army during World War 2. I read this book as a teenager in the mid-1970s (or, put another way, a very long time ago) and I loved it and have always meant to read it again. It was even better than I had remembered.
For all the privations of army life, it is clear that Spike had a lot of fun during this period, and the humour that was to make his name with the Goons and beyond is here in abundance. That said, Adolf Hitler: My Part in his Downfall ends just as Spike's regiment arrives in Algiers for its first taste of action and, whilst there is some tragedy in this memoir, things will inevitably get more serious from here on in.
Spike's silliness is infectious and the book contains a winning combination of word play, self deprecating humour and social history. And, a very credible evocation, of the life of a conscript at the start of the war right down to the smelliness of the army uniforms and how nobody got the correct size. The book contains plenty of surprising and frequently outrageous anecdotes, many of which are loud out loud funny.
4/5
The entire series is...
Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall (1971)
"Rommel?" "Gunner Who?" (1974)
Monty: His Part in My Victory (1976)
Mussolini: His Part in My Downfall (1978)
Where Have All the Bullets Gone? (1985)
Goodbye Soldier (1986)
Peace Work (1992)
Spike Milligan (1918 - 2002) is described on his gravestone as 'Writer, Artist, Musician, Humanitarian, Comedian'.
For all the privations of army life, it is clear that Spike had a lot of fun during this period, and the humour that was to make his name with the Goons and beyond is here in abundance. That said, Adolf Hitler: My Part in his Downfall ends just as Spike's regiment arrives in Algiers for its first taste of action and, whilst there is some tragedy in this memoir, things will inevitably get more serious from here on in.
Spike's silliness is infectious and the book contains a winning combination of word play, self deprecating humour and social history. And, a very credible evocation, of the life of a conscript at the start of the war right down to the smelliness of the army uniforms and how nobody got the correct size. The book contains plenty of surprising and frequently outrageous anecdotes, many of which are loud out loud funny.
4/5
The entire series is...
Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall (1971)
"Rommel?" "Gunner Who?" (1974)
Monty: His Part in My Victory (1976)
Mussolini: His Part in My Downfall (1978)
Where Have All the Bullets Gone? (1985)
Goodbye Soldier (1986)
Peace Work (1992)
Spike Milligan (1918 - 2002) is described on his gravestone as 'Writer, Artist, Musician, Humanitarian, Comedian'.
September 20, 2020
چند هفته گذشت و چندین نامه با مهر نظام وظیفه آمد دم خانهمان. کمی بعد نامهها شد روزی دو تا، با مهر فوری. مادرم در حالیکه کیسه های زغال را کول میکرد و میبرد توی زیرزمین، گفت : "حتما اعلیحضرت خیلی روت حساب باز کرده که اینقد کاغذ برات مینویسه، پسرم"
May 16, 2014
This is an utterly surreal, joyous and irreverent look at Spike Milligan’s time as a young soldier in WWII. This book takes us from the outbreak of war through to the beginning of 1943 when Milligan arrives in Algiers. In between there is receiving his call up papers, endless training – none of which he appears to have had any aptitude for – and his first steps into ‘Show Business’ when he teams up with fellow jazz fans to play at dances.
As Milligan himself states in the introduction, many terrible things happened in the war, but humour helped him cope. The names, whether made up or real, are straight from a Waugh novel – Battery Sergeant-Major ‘Jumbo’ Day for example could easily have been a character in “Men at Arms”. Everything is taken with humour and Milligan is full of wonderfully bad puns – when he finds that, during a romantic tryst in a lorry, somebody drives off with them on board, he returns to his friends who ask where he disappeared to, replying, “I got carried away...”
I am amazed it took me so long to get around to reading Spike Milligan’s war memoirs, but I am truly glad that there are many more books to read.
As Milligan himself states in the introduction, many terrible things happened in the war, but humour helped him cope. The names, whether made up or real, are straight from a Waugh novel – Battery Sergeant-Major ‘Jumbo’ Day for example could easily have been a character in “Men at Arms”. Everything is taken with humour and Milligan is full of wonderfully bad puns – when he finds that, during a romantic tryst in a lorry, somebody drives off with them on board, he returns to his friends who ask where he disappeared to, replying, “I got carried away...”
I am amazed it took me so long to get around to reading Spike Milligan’s war memoirs, but I am truly glad that there are many more books to read.
May 2, 2021
نویسنده در این کتاب خاطراتش رو از دوران سربازی در جنگ جهانی دوم به صورت مفرح و تقریباً طنز گونه بیان میکنه.
ارزش خوندن داره
ارزش خوندن داره
December 11, 2012
It has been so long since I laughed out aloud reading a book. Spike Milligan is hilarious. I kept my daughter awake for nights on end - we shared a bed while her dad was away. She asked me to read out what I was reading but didn't quite "get it". She is only 12 but my guess is that humour is different for everyone. I loved his one-liners, his suggestion to a friend that they form a band. When his friend points out there are only two of them his solution, "We'll sit a long way apart!" Just loved it. A genius. I must read more of his works now. Highly recommended.
May 29, 2022
Quite funny british humour about a guy’s journey in the army throughout ww2
November 27, 2022
بعد از خواندن پاکون (که باعث شد در برابر اسپایک میلیگان سر تعظیم فرود بیاورم) گمان نمی کردم که کتاب دیگری به پای آن برسد. اما چه شد؟ کتاب دیگری از همان نویسنده خواندم و تعظیمی دوباره!!!
به قول خودِ نویسنده که در ابتدای کتاب می گوید: "بعد از پاکون قسم خوردم که کتاب دیگری ننویسم و بفرمایید. این هم از این!"
"آدولف هیتر و نقش من در سقوطش"، کتاب اول از مجموعه طنز 7 جلدی خاط��ات جنگ است که میلیگان بر پایه ی خاطرات واقعی اش در دوران جنگ جهانی دوم نوشته است.
به قول خودِ نویسنده که در ابتدای کتاب می گوید: "بعد از پاکون قسم خوردم که کتاب دیگری ننویسم و بفرمایید. این هم از این!"
"آدولف هیتر و نقش من در سقوطش"، کتاب اول از مجموعه طنز 7 جلدی خاط��ات جنگ است که میلیگان بر پایه ی خاطرات واقعی اش در دوران جنگ جهانی دوم نوشته است.
July 3, 2017
Bought this book on a limb when I saw the title. To top it off, under the title it said, 'Now a hitlarious film'. How can i not pass on that pun? So that sealed the deal.
I really enjoyed this book from the vivid descriptions of war practices to the humorous practical jokes, talkbacks and commentary. As a lover of music, the talk of Milligan forming a band, playing gigs and their love for jazz made me unbearably happy. The fact there was a gun fight in a club and Milligan was the only one still playing; just one of the many funny anecdotes in this story.
Favourite quotes:
- "It's a great feeling playing Jazz. Most certainly it never started a war."
- "Happiness is a yesterday thing."
This short book is well worth the read.
I really enjoyed this book from the vivid descriptions of war practices to the humorous practical jokes, talkbacks and commentary. As a lover of music, the talk of Milligan forming a band, playing gigs and their love for jazz made me unbearably happy. The fact there was a gun fight in a club and Milligan was the only one still playing; just one of the many funny anecdotes in this story.
Favourite quotes:
- "It's a great feeling playing Jazz. Most certainly it never started a war."
- "Happiness is a yesterday thing."
This short book is well worth the read.
October 22, 2017
aAAATENSHun!
Right you 'orrible lot read this it's funny right. This here book is about Spike an' iz war years, got that! You will piss yerself larfin'.
Go on! Read it, yew will lov' it.
Right you 'orrible lot read this it's funny right. This here book is about Spike an' iz war years, got that! You will piss yerself larfin'.
Go on! Read it, yew will lov' it.
February 27, 2018
At Victoria Station the R.T.O. gave me a travel warrant, a white feather and a picture of Hitler marked 'This is your enemy'. I searched every compartment, but he wasn't on the train. At 4.30, June 2nd, 1940, on a summer's day all mare's tails and blue sky we arrived at Bexhill-on-Sea, where I got off. It wasn't easy. The train didn't stop there.
Before Spike Milligan wrote The Goon Show he had to go to war. He wrote seven short books about the experience based on his diaries, here's the first one which concerns joining the army, training, starting a jazz band during training, more training, exploits/hijinks/affairs, and finally getting shipped off to Northern Africa, where the book ends.
Roughly every third sentence is a joke, and most are good - sometimes, randomly, the horrors and insanity of his situation creeps in for a paragraph where he describes (without joking) how a fellow soldier died in an accident, or how decades later he visited the same place and cannot deal with the ghosts ('What’s happened to us all since then? The world’s gone sour. Happiness is a yesterday thing.')
I don't know if this is for everyone, did the first paragraph made you laugh? Then go for it, it's like that the entire time.
Occasions of insanity such as this stopped us all going mad.
September 22, 2013
This is a very funny book. It was a little hard to get into at first, given the colloquialisms that Milligan is wont to use, but you get used to it fairly quickly (at least I did, being an American who's an Anglophile at heart). The humor is pithy and nearly constant, but there's a good look into what was happening in Britain in the early days of World War II, which is entirely different from the picture most of us have of the US during the same period, since beyond Pearl Harbor, none of us had to worry about the major enemy forces attacking us personally every day.
I'm hoping to start the next book in the series soon.
I'm hoping to start the next book in the series soon.
April 6, 2019
من این کتاب رو به پبشنهاد خود مترجم آقای اسکندری خریدم و خوندم. با این که ترجمه بی نقص بود و مترجم تمام تلاشش رو کرده بود که شوخی هایی که برای فرهنگ ما ناشناخته هستن و تکیه کلام های نامانوس با زبان فارسی رو به خوبی ترجمه کنه و تا جای ممکن هم سانسور نکنه اما باز هم این کتاب برای من تجربه ای شد که دیگه هیچ وقت کتاب طنز نخوانم مگر به زبان اصلی.
2.5/5
2.5/5
May 13, 2017
You must never take yourself too seriously; here is a good model. This book is neither deep nor profound but it is piss-your-pants funny. If the title alone makes you laugh, go for it.
October 29, 2022
A very entertaining, humorous account of Spike Milligan’s World War Two experiences. A delight to read.
This book was first published in 1971.
This book was first published in 1971.
December 4, 2018
If you have ever watched the Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger classic 'The Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp', you would remember the frenetic comic frenzy of the first fifteen minutes, choreographed like a comic interlude. A squadron of Tommies, all gloriously drunk on wicked mischief, set out to launch a surprise attack on the Turkish bath in London where their Commanding Officer Major General Clive Candy is relaxing in the welcome warmth before the actual drill begins. Much tomfoolery ensues before the film settles down and the actual narrative commences.
Now, imagine if Monty Python directed this film and expanded the goofball humour of the first fifteen minutes into a full-length feature packed with more gags and brilliant, blistering British wit and wisecracks than you could digest in one go. Yes, that is what some of this book, the first in the series of wartime memoirs by celebrated British comedian Spike Milligan (who was, coincidentally, the inspiration for Monty Python in the first place with his group act 'The Goon Show'), would feel like: hilarious, anarchic, almost brutally sarcastic, bawdy and guaranteed to leave you in splits.
But as I said, it is only some of this book that is hilarious. Don't get me wrong; I laughed, rolled, smiled, shook my head with mock-disbelief and loved all the freaks and weirdos and did not want the splendid comic set-pieces to end. There is a lot of outrageous humour to be found in the pages, some of it is recklessly obscene and deliciously off-the-wall and audacious; there are also crackling one-liners, rambunctious dance evenings that explode into chaos, drunken behaviour, pratfalls during setting up and shifting camp and through it all, you will be nearly tickled to death.
But it is hard to be tickled to death when, at the same time, Milligan is also gunning for biting, bitter satirical commentary on the state of the war itself and how it came home to rattle the whole of Britain .There are vividly nightmarish scenes of nerve-wracking despair meshed ingeniously in between the more rib-tickling sequences; there is also a heightened sense of the irreparable damage that destruction and death leave on mere mortals, not least of all the hapless troops marching to war themselves.
For instance, read how Milligan describes the tumultous emotions on one of those agonising nights when London is being bombed from the air at night:
'We looked at the blaze and it seemed to be getting bigger. I think we all knew it was London. My mother, father and brother were there. I'm not sure how i felt. Helpless, I suppose. Bombardier Edser switched on the BBC Midnight News, but there was no mention of any raid. Lots of the lads from London (we were a London regiment) found it hard to sleep that night. In the dark of our bedrooms, there were attempts at reassurance'.
Simple yet effectively stirring and utterly believable because this was exactly how everybody felt in those days.
This is, above all, a pitch-perfect and pitch-black satire on war. There are lighter comic digs made at stiff-upper-lipped authority, the abysmal cooking, the futile marches and camping trails that only amount up to idleness, farce and trivial affairs. There are even darker moments towards the end, as the troops set out to sail to Algiers and realise, for the first time, the gruelling experience of bracing through gale at sea, seasickness and even unexpectedly gruesome accidents on the trail that leave them unnerved.
Yet, the wonder is that this book, even with its undeniably harsh truths, is so entertaining in the end. Milligan's flippant, conversational tone keeps things wonderfully lively and balances both morbid darkness and cheery camaraderie on an even keel; for all the hilarity and horror, there are also lovely, leisurely moments when the troops celebrate with song, dance and fervent affairs with ladies in between.
If you roared with laughter after finishing 'Catch 22', this one comes highly recommended to you, to see the other side of the Atlantic going bonkers over the war long before the actual fighting began.
Now, imagine if Monty Python directed this film and expanded the goofball humour of the first fifteen minutes into a full-length feature packed with more gags and brilliant, blistering British wit and wisecracks than you could digest in one go. Yes, that is what some of this book, the first in the series of wartime memoirs by celebrated British comedian Spike Milligan (who was, coincidentally, the inspiration for Monty Python in the first place with his group act 'The Goon Show'), would feel like: hilarious, anarchic, almost brutally sarcastic, bawdy and guaranteed to leave you in splits.
But as I said, it is only some of this book that is hilarious. Don't get me wrong; I laughed, rolled, smiled, shook my head with mock-disbelief and loved all the freaks and weirdos and did not want the splendid comic set-pieces to end. There is a lot of outrageous humour to be found in the pages, some of it is recklessly obscene and deliciously off-the-wall and audacious; there are also crackling one-liners, rambunctious dance evenings that explode into chaos, drunken behaviour, pratfalls during setting up and shifting camp and through it all, you will be nearly tickled to death.
But it is hard to be tickled to death when, at the same time, Milligan is also gunning for biting, bitter satirical commentary on the state of the war itself and how it came home to rattle the whole of Britain .There are vividly nightmarish scenes of nerve-wracking despair meshed ingeniously in between the more rib-tickling sequences; there is also a heightened sense of the irreparable damage that destruction and death leave on mere mortals, not least of all the hapless troops marching to war themselves.
For instance, read how Milligan describes the tumultous emotions on one of those agonising nights when London is being bombed from the air at night:
'We looked at the blaze and it seemed to be getting bigger. I think we all knew it was London. My mother, father and brother were there. I'm not sure how i felt. Helpless, I suppose. Bombardier Edser switched on the BBC Midnight News, but there was no mention of any raid. Lots of the lads from London (we were a London regiment) found it hard to sleep that night. In the dark of our bedrooms, there were attempts at reassurance'.
Simple yet effectively stirring and utterly believable because this was exactly how everybody felt in those days.
This is, above all, a pitch-perfect and pitch-black satire on war. There are lighter comic digs made at stiff-upper-lipped authority, the abysmal cooking, the futile marches and camping trails that only amount up to idleness, farce and trivial affairs. There are even darker moments towards the end, as the troops set out to sail to Algiers and realise, for the first time, the gruelling experience of bracing through gale at sea, seasickness and even unexpectedly gruesome accidents on the trail that leave them unnerved.
Yet, the wonder is that this book, even with its undeniably harsh truths, is so entertaining in the end. Milligan's flippant, conversational tone keeps things wonderfully lively and balances both morbid darkness and cheery camaraderie on an even keel; for all the hilarity and horror, there are also lovely, leisurely moments when the troops celebrate with song, dance and fervent affairs with ladies in between.
If you roared with laughter after finishing 'Catch 22', this one comes highly recommended to you, to see the other side of the Atlantic going bonkers over the war long before the actual fighting began.
July 19, 2020
Since my copy of Spike Milligan’s Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall is on Kindle and to get it out of the way there are some nice drawings throughout the book and they do not show well on a Kindle Viewer. At my side is a paperback copy of Book 4 of his war time memoirs and the photos in it are much crisper, even if page size is only slightly larger.
With that out of the way, my recommendation is that this is better thought of as the war time memoires of a soldier, musician, and humorist and not as it tends to be sold as the early humor of the leader of BBC radio gag show, The Goon Squad. This being the great Spike Milligan, his humor is foremost, but he is also addressing his demons, and remembering people who became casualties along the way. In some ways I think Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall, makes for a reasonable follow up to the serious Sword of Honor trilogy by Evelyn Waugh. Both begin with an England grossly unprepared for war and depending on outmoded traditions and building a tradition for muddling through. Milligan see the humor in life, and the bitter humor of being in the ranks. Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall also makes for an odd contrast with the American version of early days in the Army. Clearly Gunner Spike never had to deal with an American Recruit Company drill sergeant.
Another reason for reading this book from a more serious point of view is that so much of the humor is dated, insider and to a modern ear flat. Absent a major background in The Goon Squad (which I do not have) or other 1950-1980 British radio and television comedy (which I do) it is likely that a lot of this will mean little to even a modern Englishman. Another reviewer speaks of having to look up the regular use of British Army Initials, (RSM is Regimental Sergeant Major, about as close to God as a new recruit is likely to get). Likewise, there are a flow of expressions that may have long since lost currency. Looking things up is pretty much the end of comic timing.
That said a soldier is a solder. Horn dogs, given to being slackers, dubious of authority and at once eager and afraid of the dual nature of war, boredom and violence. Book one of Milligan’s memoirs covers the time from his draftee enlistment to deployment to Africa. Dated or not, he captures the feel of his life in the ranks and reflects how his refusal to be overly impressed by rank or be forced into the standard image of a like one, like all soldier.
I will be reading more of Spike Milligan. The chuckles are there but there is more.
With that out of the way, my recommendation is that this is better thought of as the war time memoires of a soldier, musician, and humorist and not as it tends to be sold as the early humor of the leader of BBC radio gag show, The Goon Squad. This being the great Spike Milligan, his humor is foremost, but he is also addressing his demons, and remembering people who became casualties along the way. In some ways I think Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall, makes for a reasonable follow up to the serious Sword of Honor trilogy by Evelyn Waugh. Both begin with an England grossly unprepared for war and depending on outmoded traditions and building a tradition for muddling through. Milligan see the humor in life, and the bitter humor of being in the ranks. Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall also makes for an odd contrast with the American version of early days in the Army. Clearly Gunner Spike never had to deal with an American Recruit Company drill sergeant.
Another reason for reading this book from a more serious point of view is that so much of the humor is dated, insider and to a modern ear flat. Absent a major background in The Goon Squad (which I do not have) or other 1950-1980 British radio and television comedy (which I do) it is likely that a lot of this will mean little to even a modern Englishman. Another reviewer speaks of having to look up the regular use of British Army Initials, (RSM is Regimental Sergeant Major, about as close to God as a new recruit is likely to get). Likewise, there are a flow of expressions that may have long since lost currency. Looking things up is pretty much the end of comic timing.
That said a soldier is a solder. Horn dogs, given to being slackers, dubious of authority and at once eager and afraid of the dual nature of war, boredom and violence. Book one of Milligan’s memoirs covers the time from his draftee enlistment to deployment to Africa. Dated or not, he captures the feel of his life in the ranks and reflects how his refusal to be overly impressed by rank or be forced into the standard image of a like one, like all soldier.
I will be reading more of Spike Milligan. The chuckles are there but there is more.
September 5, 2011
Based on the way this account of Spike Milligan's time in the British military during World War II reads, you'll wonder afterward how in the heck the Allies ever won the thing. From details about the horrendous ineptitude of the officers and men alike, to the comedic antics of the men in and around the defense of Great Britain, Milligan's novel (which was made into a movie), is listed on Amazon.com's list of all-time best humor books.
It is a quick read and will raise a few dry smiles, but it is not one to go out of your way for.
It is a quick read and will raise a few dry smiles, but it is not one to go out of your way for.
December 7, 2014
I read it to bits and the more I read it the more I appreciated that Spike has given a fair picture, surreal as it is, of what life was like for young men like him and his bombadier mates who suddenly found themselves in the army. Lots of quotable bits, but I advise you to read it yourself.
The Goon Show was the joy of my childhood. I wrote Spike a fan letter and he replied - apparently he always did reply, personally.
The Goon Show was the joy of my childhood. I wrote Spike a fan letter and he replied - apparently he always did reply, personally.
May 31, 2018
From BBC radio 4 Extra:
A new gunner is recruited for the Second World War.
Spike Milligan shares memories of his wartime service.
Published in 1971, Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall is the first volume of the Spike Milligan's idiosyncratic military memoir.
Reversioned into 8 parts by BBC Radio 4 Extra.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00g...
A new gunner is recruited for the Second World War.
Spike Milligan shares memories of his wartime service.
Published in 1971, Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall is the first volume of the Spike Milligan's idiosyncratic military memoir.
Reversioned into 8 parts by BBC Radio 4 Extra.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00g...
March 6, 2014
2 reads 20 years apart.
November 15, 2023
I laughed out loud so much at this book, in traffic, it's great. Especially when Spike cracks up whilst reading his own book, lovely.
October 22, 2012
This book is quite different from other soldiers memoirs I've read before (my favorite probably being All the Way to Berlin: A Paratrooper at War in Europe), mostly because it is written in a humorous style. And while at times I enjoyed that style, and had to laugh because of what I read, at other points it came across a little forces. Like the book had to be funny so jokes/funny lines/puns where place in the text when ever possible. Even if it didn't make the book any better.
Also the 'story line' (can one call it a story?) was a bit uncorrelated at times. While reading I would sometimes wonder "what does that have to do with what you just mentioned?"
The book has a tone of photo's and drawings which are a nice addition to the text, and fit well with the way the book is written.
Although I don't have that much to complain about the book I am only giving it two stars. This is because I didn't really enjoy reading it that much. It's not a bad book, and I can see why people like it, but I don't think I will be picking up the next books in the series any time soon.
Also the 'story line' (can one call it a story?) was a bit uncorrelated at times. While reading I would sometimes wonder "what does that have to do with what you just mentioned?"
The book has a tone of photo's and drawings which are a nice addition to the text, and fit well with the way the book is written.
Although I don't have that much to complain about the book I am only giving it two stars. This is because I didn't really enjoy reading it that much. It's not a bad book, and I can see why people like it, but I don't think I will be picking up the next books in the series any time soon.
October 12, 2019
I read this a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away aka c/o Gerrards Cross library. I enjoyed it then for the jokes and silliness. I still like those moments but I noticed the serious stuff more this time. The last page for example when he talks about two tragedies, lightens it with the story of the Burnt Bum Affair before hitting you with the final line.
It tells the story of Spike Milligan’s war experience. Or at least the early parts of it. The not joining up, the joining up, the band, the chaos of training and preparation, the sex and the boredom. Milligan’s book is one of the few war memoirs to make clear how much sex was going on then. Like now I suppose but with the added knowledge that the person you were shagging might be dead tomorrow. Which is also true if today if you choose to think about. Which you don’t because that way lies melancholy and poetry.
Anyway I recommend this book. There are moments of what might be called political correctness but this is Spike Milligan. A man of his time and not.
Read it.
It tells the story of Spike Milligan’s war experience. Or at least the early parts of it. The not joining up, the joining up, the band, the chaos of training and preparation, the sex and the boredom. Milligan’s book is one of the few war memoirs to make clear how much sex was going on then. Like now I suppose but with the added knowledge that the person you were shagging might be dead tomorrow. Which is also true if today if you choose to think about. Which you don’t because that way lies melancholy and poetry.
Anyway I recommend this book. There are moments of what might be called political correctness but this is Spike Milligan. A man of his time and not.
Read it.
May 28, 2018
Danger of fractured ribs through severe laughter!
First read this book many many years ago. Since then I've done 25 years in the army myself and can recall every tale and character Spike so vividly, accurately and humorously recounts. This is a book written with pure squaddy wit I'm so glad that I rediscovered it. Sadly there are few Milligans left in the forces today. A real unputdownable gem.
First read this book many many years ago. Since then I've done 25 years in the army myself and can recall every tale and character Spike so vividly, accurately and humorously recounts. This is a book written with pure squaddy wit I'm so glad that I rediscovered it. Sadly there are few Milligans left in the forces today. A real unputdownable gem.
December 20, 2013
Abolutely hilarious and well written memoirs of Spike Milligan's time in the service (Part 1 at least). I love it, cannot wait to read more, he certainly has a talent for painting a vivid and often funny picture with his words.
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